Homeless shelter gets new roof, free

Escalante Roofing employees removed the old roof on the Reynolds Home in preparation for a new roof. (Victor Calzada / El Paso Times)

The Reynolds Home, a shelter for women and children in the Lower Valley, will get a new roof from Escalante Roofing Co. through its Sheltering Hope giveaway.

Roof replacement started Monday.

Dorothy Truax, shelter director, feels lucky the Reynolds Home was chosen among dozens of nonprofit organizations for the project.

"We are very happy and thankful that we were chosen, this is the perfect time of the year," Truax said.

More than 25 nonprofit organizations applied for the program, Escalante Roofing representatives said.

Truax said that for nonprofits, if you don't get community support, then it's really hard to keep going.

The Reynolds Home has provided shelter and assisted homeless children and women for more than 20 years. The building was constructed in 1926 and has had the same roof over it for 21 years.

Truax said the roof has been patched and because of a lack of funding, it hasn't been replaced.

"We can't afford a new roof. We were overwhelmed that we were chosen for the new roof," she said.

The shelter currently houses 10 families, including 28 children.

"It's really important to keep the families warm and safe," she added.

The Sheltering Hope program started three years ago. During the first two years, it provided roofs for single-family homes.

This year, the company wanted to go "a little bit bigger, with the biggest impact in the community" by helping a nonprofit organization, said Johnny Escalante, program coordinator.

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"After considering all of them, their budgets, where they get their funds from, how many families they assist and how they assist them, we felt that the Reynolds Home had great roofing needs," Escalante said.

One of the first things Escalante based his decision on was the roof's condition.

Escalante said the type of roof on The Reynolds Home has been discontinued and could not be repaired anymore.

The second thing, he said, was that The Reynolds Home not only gives women and children a home, but also trains women and helps them get back on their feet while children are put in school.

Escalante said the organization can now use money earmarked for a new roof to provide resources for families.

Under the market price, roofing for the two-story home runs between $12,000 and $17,000. Escalante said the roofing company will handle the entire roof replacement for free.